Finding Aid of Floyd Webster Historical Photograph Collection, 2013

Dublin Core

Title

Finding Aid of Floyd Webster Historical Photograph Collection, 2013

Subject

Kingsley (Mich.)

Description

Finding aid of Floyd Webster Historical Photograph Collection, inclusive of 1880s to 1990s Village of Kingsley history.

Creator

Kingsley Branch Library, Kingsley (Mich.)

Source

Local History Collections, Kingsley Branch Library, Kingsley (Mich.)

Publisher

Traverse Area District Library, Traverse City (Mich.)

Date

2011 (1st edition)
2013 (2nd edition)

Contributor

Kingsley Public Library, Kingsley (Mich.)

Rights

This document is protected by copyright law. Contact the Kingsley Branch Library for permission to reproduce, display or transmit this document.

Relation

None.

Format

PDF

Language

English

Type

Document

Identifier

kbl-lhc002-fwhpc-findingaid

Coverage

Kingsley, Paradise Township, Grand Traverse County, Michigan.

PDF Text

Text

Local History Collections
Kingsley Branch Library
Floyd Webster HPC, 1
LOCAL HISTORY COLLECTIONS
KINGSLEY BRANCH LIBRARY
213 S Brownson Ave. Kingsley, MI 49649­0427

Creator:
Title:
Inclusive dates:
Bulk dates:
Extent:
Call number:

Language:
Acquisition:
Accruals:
Access:
Photographs:
A­V Material:
Digital Material:
Copyright:
Processed By:

Floyd Webster, Kingsley Historian
Floyd Webster Historical Photograph Collection
1880s­1990s
1880­1925, 1970­1990
6 print boxes (1.5 linear feet),
31 oversized folders (1 linear foot)
KBL­LHC 002

Material is in English
Donated by Floyd Webster, Kingsley Historian, to the
Kingsley Branch Library over a period of years in the
mid­2000s.
Periodic additions to the collection are expected.
The collection is open without restriction.
Boxes 1­6, Oversized Folders 1­31.
None.
See digital reproduction of entire collection at
<http://localhistory.tadl.org/collections/show/3>.
Copyright is held by the Traverse Area District Library.
Amy Barritt, 2011­2012

Local History Collections
Kingsley Branch Library
Floyd Webster HPC, 2

Abstract
Photograph collection of Floyd Webster (1920­), historian of Kingsley, Grand Traverse
County, Michigan, from 1958 to the present. The collection contains images with identifying
information gathered by Webster while acting as the Village’s historian. The collection is
available in its entirety online at <http://localhistory.tadl.org/collections/show/3>. The series
in the collection are: Photographs.
History
From the Traverse City Record­Eagle, 7 August 1990
“Caption: Photo collection: Floyd Webster looks at a page of old photos of Kingsley area
stores that existed in the early 1900s. Photograph credits: Record­Eagle/Minnie
Wabanimee
History on display
Man’s collection will be shown to help mark Kingsley’s centennial
By WILLIAM SCOTT
Record­Eagle staff writer
KINGSLEY­ You might say Floyd Webster has waited 32 years for this week.
That’s how long Webster, 70, has been collecting Kingsley’s photographic history­ pictures
of families, sports teams, businesses, train wrecks, and even Polaroid chronicles of recent
public works projects such as sewer and sidewalk construction.
That history­ more than 4,000 photos mounted on 220 cardboard posters­ will be on
display Saturday at the village office building as part of Kingsley’s centennial celebration.
People can get a look at Kingsley’s lumbering and potato­farming past when they’re not at
the arm­wrestling or nail­driving contests.
And Webster, a retired cook at the now­closed Traverse City Regional Psychiatric Hospital
and the official village historian, will ride in a white car in Saturday’s Heritage Days Parade.
Webster has lived in Kingsley all of his life, except for a stint in the U.S. Air Force during
World War II. He and his wife, Melvina, have lived in their white house on Fenton Street
since he returned.
Between the knowledge in his head and the photos, old newspapers and local histories in
his spare bedroom, Webster runs an unofficial Kingsley historical museum out of his
house.

Local History Collections
Kingsley Branch Library
Floyd Webster HPC, 3
“When anybody wants to know something, they call me on the phone and ask who married
who or when did they get married.”
Webster’s role as historian began when a retired farmer, Charles Snyder, came to him with
boxes of old photographs of Kingsley’s people and buildings.
Webster decided to make a photo history album, but he needed Snyder’s help to identify
the people and places.
“So we sat there in the evenings and sorted pictures. He’d tell me who the people were and
I’d write them down,” he said.
When Snyder couldn’t identify someone, Webster would call on other village elders.
“They’d say, “Oh yes, this is my Aunt Mildred or my Uncle George,” he said.
As word of Webster’s photo project got around, people would drop off boxes of old photos.
“They started leaving boxes of them in the garage,” he said.
Soon he scrapped the plan for a photo album and began mounting the pictures on posters.
There are pictures of the still­standing Hotel DeFrance, of long­gone baseball teams such
as the Hannah White Sox and the Summit City Invincibles, and of highway M­113 in 1924,
when it was a one­lane dirt road.
Kingsley started as a stop on the rail line from Walton Junction to Traverse City, Webster
said. Judson Kingsley, who moved here from DeKalb County, Ill., in 1860, built the depot
and a general store and named it Kingsley Station.
Later the village merged with the adjoining village of Paradise and its name was shortened
to Kingsley.
Sawmills, saloons, hotels and stores soon sprouted, and Kingsley was a bustling town
before the turn of the century, Webster said. But the lumber industry collapsed about the
same time fire destroyed 14 businesses on Labor Day in 1901, and Kingsley never
regained its bustle.
Farmers planted potatoes where forests used to stand, filling 11 warehouses at one point,
but that crop eventually faded also, he said.
Now, however, Webster foresees new, more modest prosperity.
“It’s growing better today than it has in years,” he said.”

Local History Collections
Kingsley Branch Library
Floyd Webster HPC, 4

Scope and Content Note
Floyd Webster, a life­long resident of Kingsley, Michigan, has been the village historian
since 1958. He volunteered countless hours to discovering and preserving the history of the
village. The historical photograph collection includes many of the images that he had
collected from various local residents while acting as the village historian. Subjects in this
collection include Kingsley Families, Businesses, Churches, Construction, the American
Revolution Bicentennial held in Kingsley, and the Kingsley Fair and Heritage Days. Images
date from the late 1800s to the late 1900s.
During the creation of this collection, Webster reached out to community members to
identify persons and places that appear in the images. He then pasted the photographs to
a piece of standard white poster board, and handwrote that information underneath the
image. These poster boards were on display at Webster’s house for visitors to see, and
Webster made the poster boards available for display at major village events, especially
the annual Kingsley Heritage Days. Typically, Webster would make each poster board
thematic; for example, all the images that appear on poster board with accession number
58 (designated fw058xx), are all photographs of former teachers of Kingsley Area Schools.
Each image has a unique identifier, which indicates the following: Floyd Webster Historical
Photograph Collection (fw), poster board accession number (XXX, e.g. 001), then image
number on the poster board, from left to right, top to bottom (xx, e.g. 01).
The collection, with item­level metadata, is available in its entirety online at
<http://localhistory.tadl.org/collections/show/3>. Image metadata appeared originally as
handwritten notes by Webster. There may be spelling errors, as well as errors in identified
persons and places. When another reliable source was readily available, the Archivist
changed the metadata on the digital image to reflect the most accurate information. The
metadata available with the original photographs remains unchanged.
Digitization of this collection was deemed necessary, as the condition of the photographs
are rapidly deteriorating. Use of the physical collection in lieu of the digital collection will
only be granted in special circumstances. Please consult with the staff at the Kingsley
Branch Library before visiting to conduct research.

Local History Collections
Kingsley Branch Library
Floyd Webster HPC, 5
Box No.

Description
Photographs [series]:

Box 1
fw00101­00102, fw00104­00118, fw00120­00121, fw00123­00124,
fw00126­00128, fw00201­00202, fw00204­00220, fw00222­00230,
fw00232­00237, fw00302­00308, fw00310­00333, fw00335­00341,
fw00403­00407, fw00410­00412, fw00414­00415, fw00417,
fw00422, fw00504, fw00507, fw00509­00510, fw00512­00519,
fw00604­00605, fw00608­00610, fw00612­00617, fw00619,
fw00621­00626, fw00703­00727, fw00801, fw00803­00805,
fw00807­00810, fw00812­00814, fw00816­00818, fw00902,
fw00905­00909, fw00912­00915, fw00918­00919, fw00921­00922,
fw00924­00927, fw01005, fw01008, fw01012­01015,
fw01017­01019, fw01103, fw01106, fw01108, fw01110­01114,
fw01116­01117, fw01119­01125
Box 2
fw01202, fw01204, fw01206, fw01210, fw01301­01304,
fw01306­01307, fw01309­01322, fw01324­01325, fw01327­01330,
fw01401­01409, fw01411­01416, fw01418­01420, fw01422­01427,
fw01429­01434, fw01601­01611, fw01613­01636, fw01703,
fw01706­01711, fw01714­01720, fw01722­01726, fw01802,
fw01804­01826, fw01828­01839, fw01901­01903, fw01905­01909,
fw01911­01913, fw01915­01927, fw01929­01931, fw02013­02014,
fw02103­02105, fw02108­02109, fw02111, fw01213, fw02115,
fw02204­02207, fw02305­02308, fw02313­02314, fw02316,
fw02402­02404, fw02406, fw02408­02409, fw02411,
fw02413­02414, fw02416­02417
Box 3
fw02502­02503, fw02505, fw02507­02508, fw02606­02608,
fw02611­02614, fw02616­02618, fw02703, fw02801,
fw02803­02805, fw02809, fw02815, fw02817, fw02821­02824,
fw02908­02909, fw02911­02912, fw02915­02916, fw02918­02919,
fw03001­03002, fw03010, fw03012­03013, fw03015­03017,
fw03104, fw03106­03113, fw03115­03120, fw03205­03207,
fw03209­03210, fw03310, fw03402, fw03410, fw03412­03413,
fw03418, fw03501­03504, fw03506­03509, fw03511­03512,
fw03514­03515, fw03517­03529, fw03531­03534, fw03601­03607,
fw03609­03628, fw03701­03724, fw03801­03831, fw03901­03924
Box 4
fw03925­03934, fw04001­04035, fw04101­04135, fw04201­04232,
fw04301­04334, fw04401­04428

Local History Collections
Kingsley Branch Library
Floyd Webster HPC, 6
Box No.
Box 5

Description
fw04501­04518, fw04602­04607, fw04609­04641, fw04702­04737,
fw04803­04804, fw04806­04833, fw04905, fw04907,
fw05101­05103, fw05105­05115, fw05201­05242, fw05303,
fw05305­05306, fw05308­05323, fw05325­05328, fw05402­05403,
fw05407, fw05410, fw05412, fw05417­0541

Box 6
fw05603, fw05706, fw05709, fw05801­05860, fw05901­05925,
fw06004­06025, fw06101, fw06103­06105, fw06107­06115,
fw06117­06119, fw06205­06209, fw06211­06212, fw06214­06220,
fw00003­00010
Oversized 001
fw00103, fw00119, fw00125, fw00203, fw00221, fw00231, fw00301,
fw00309
Oversized 002
fw00401­00402, fw00408­00409, fw00413, fw00416,
fw00418­00421
Oversized 003
fw00501­00503, fw00505­00506, fw00508, fw00511, fw00520
Oversized 004
fw00601­00603, fw00606­00607, fw00611, fw00618, fw00620,
fw00701­00702
Oversized 005
fw00802, fw00806, fw00811, fw00815, fw00901, fw00903­00904,
fw00911, fw00916­00917, fw00920, fw00923
Oversized 006
fw01002­01004, fw01006­01007, fw01009­01011, fw01016,
fw010208
Oversized 007
fw01101­01102, fw01104­01105, fw01107, fw01109, fw01115,
fw01118
Oversized 008
fw01201, fw01203, fw01205, fw01207­01209, fw01305, fw01308,
fw01323, fw01326
Oversized 009
fw01410, fw01417, fw01421, fw01428, fw01612, fw01701­01702b,
fw01704­01705, fw01712
Oversized 010
fw017013, fw01721, fw01801, fw01803, fw01827, fw01904,
fw01910, fw01914, fw01928
Oversized 011
fw02001­02012

Local History Collections
Kingsley Branch Library
Floyd Webster HPC, 7
Box No.
Oversized 012

Description
fw02101­02102, fw02106­02107, fw02110, fw02112­02112b,
fw02114, fw02116, fw02201­02203

Oversized 013
fw02208­02210, fw02301­02304, fw02309­02312, fw02315,
fw02317
Oversized 014
fw02401, fw02405, fw02407, fw02410, fw02412, fw02415, fw02501,
fw02504, fw02506, fw02509­02510
Oversized 015
fw02601­02605, fw02609­02610, fw02615, fw02701­02702
Oversized 016
fw02704­02714
Oversized 017
fw02802, fw02806, fw02807­02808, fw02810, fw02812­02814,
fw02816, fw02818­02820
Oversized 018
fw02901­02907, fw02910, fw02913­02914, fw02917, fw02920
Oversized 019
fw03003­03009, fw03011, fw03014
Oversized 020
fw03101­03103, fw03105, fw03114, fw03201­03204, fw03208
Oversized 021
fw03211­03213, fw03301­03307
Oversized 022
fw03308­03309, fw03311, fw03401, fw03403­03409
Oversized 023
fw03411, fw03414­fw03417, fw03419­03420, fw03505, fw03510,
fw03513, fw03516, fw03530
Oversized 024
fw03608, fw03629, fw03832­03832b, fw04601, fw04608, fw04701,
fw04801­04802, fw04805, fw04819, fw04834
Oversized 025
fw04901­04904, fw04906, fw05104­05104b, fw05301­05302,
fw05304, fw05307, fw05324, fw05329
Oversized 026
fw05401­05401b, fw05404­05405, fw05408­05409, fw05411,
fw05413­05416
Oversized 027
fw05501­05507
Oversized 028
fw05601­05602, fw05604­05610
Oversized 029
fw05701, fw05703­05705, fw05707­05708, fw05710­05711

Local History Collections
Kingsley Branch Library
Floyd Webster HPC, 8
Box No.
Oversized 030

Description
fw06001­06003, fw06102, fw06106, fw06116, fw06120

Oversized 031
fw06201­06204, fw06210, fw06213, fw06218, fw00001­00002,
fw00011­00012

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